Johannesburg - South Africa's Olympic Games gold medallists have each receive a cow as a reward, according to a report on Saturday.
Jan Scannell, better known as Jan Braai, promised each South African athlete who won a gold medal at the Olympic Games a cow, Beeld reported.
The four member rowing team were each a cow richer after winning South Africa's third gold medal at the games in London.
Sizwe Ndlovu, Matthew Brittain, John Smith and James Thompson won the men's lightweight four final.
According to the report Ndlovu and Brittain chose a live cow, while Thompson and Smith chose biltong, and biltong and meat, respectively.
A cow was about R7000.
Ndlovu's cow was going to a friend's farm in Pietermaritzburg, where he grew up.
He told the newspaper he was delighted with the “unusual gift”.
“From a national cultural perspective I did not expect to get “lobola” because I won a gold medal,” Ndlovu was quoted as saying.
Brittain's cow would be taken to his uncle's farm in Lydenburg.
Olympic gold medal swimmer Cameron van der Burgh had decided to take 140kg of boerewors as his reward, according to the report.
Van der Burgh and his manager Ryk Neethling gave the boerewors to 252 children at the Abangani Enkosini orphanage in Alexandra, Johannesburg on Friday.
Scannell told the newspaper that 200m butterfly gold medallist Chad le Clos had not yet decided what he wanted to do with his cow. - Sapa